Decisions, Decisions
How are you more likely to make an important decision — by reasoning through it, or by going with your gut?
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When it comes to decisions, I’m the right brain and Terry is the left. It works out very well for us. He spends a lot of time thinking things through, while I’m drumming my fingers on the table waiting for him to make up his mind. I’d say about 85% of the time, his left brain finally agrees with my right brain. That 15% is when he manages to talk me around to his way of thinking. Either way, we’re both usually satisfied with the outcome.
Take today, for example. He saw an ad in the paper the other day for a special event with a well-known hearing aid company. Free ear exam and half-price hearing aids. He’s been thinking for a long time that my hearing is getting worse by the minute.
I, on the other hand, only have trouble hearing HIM. Everywhere else I’m pretty good, unless there’s background noise or the person is turned away from me. There is a definite change from when I was young, but mostly I hear everything.
Terry has a pretty big hearing loss. He does have hearing aids, and figured I needed them too. So I agreed to go have the test, even though my gut was telling me my loss isn’t too bad; that I could hear him better if he wouldn’t swallow the ends of his sentences, look away when he’s talking, or try to carry on a conversation when I’m in the basement and he’s in the back 40 🙂
So he came with me, as requested by the audiologist, and I got my ears tested this morning. I thought I did pretty well. 
The audiologist took us back to the room where he would make his pitch for the hearing aids. He looked at me, and he said, “You are what we call Bad For the Business. I can’t sell you a hearing aid. Your hearing is in the normal range except for a little blip in your right hear when the background noise part of the test came up.”
He went on to explain, with a little graph dealy, that it’s likely I had superb hearing when I was younger, and the differences I’m experiencing now are aggravating to me because it’s just not as good as it used to be–but still in the normal range.
So. My instincts were right. Terry swallows his sentences, mumbles, speaks in so soft a tone that I just can’t hear him. His problem, not mine.
He’s having a hard time digesting all this. He really thought the outcome would prove that it’s my hearing, not his speaking.
Don’t you love it when you’re right about something?
The only thing he’s really pleased about is that we don’t have to spend a lot of money for hearing aids that are not covered by any insurance.
I’m glad that makes him happy 🙂
Grandpa Kreger did the same thing when he was losing his hearing. He was afraid of shouting, so he overdid everything on the soft side.
Yes, and I’ve reminded your dad of that. He says it sounds to him as if he IS speaking quitle loudly.
Well that settles it then. You still got your hearing – and your money in your pocket.
Exactly! Hearing aids are so expensive, even at half price, and I’m delighted not to have to spend that money.
I’d probably would’ve lost my hearing hearing the price – especially when insurance won’t cover them!